This is an adage that originated on the internet. Anyone who’s spent any time in comments sections, bulletin boards and forums knows full well the kind of vitriolic hate that people sometimes spew at each other on the web can be mindboggling. The way most people argue on the internet can be taken as an archetype of bad (horrible, terrible, atrocious!) argumentation.
Everyone is so hidebound in their opinions that it justifies name-calling, threats, and hatred. Despite opponents’ points being permanently up and available to analyze and review, most people somehow manage to completely fail to hear what their opponent is saying and neglect replying with cogent points on their own. The point is always to ‘win’, to score points for one’s own side in a tally no one is keeping. It was in reaction to this seemingly all-pervading attitude that this axiom was coined.
Sure, a big part of the amount of hate we see on the internet is the result of the anonymity it grants. When unable to see another person outside of a bunch of pixels on a screen it is easy to forget that there is a real human being on the other side, and it is also easier to be nasty to someone when there is very little chance of one’s own identity being found out. All the same, even in our daily, face-to-face interactions, it is sometimes difficult to realize that the person we are arguing is another human being with their own opinions and faculties just like we do.
The implications of going into every argument with this in mind are quite profound. First of all, it prompts you to respect and empathize with your opponent. Resorting to hurtful or unethical tactics becomes abhorrent and also unnecessary because as a fellow human they have the same capacity for logic and reason as you do.
You won’t have to or want to resort to underhanded tactics when arguing with someone you truly regard as equally capable of rational thought as you. It also encourages you to come to the table with the absolute best argument possible, with the right amount of research and logic behind it, delivered in the absolute best manner you can.
